White dinnerware. Help, please.

I am looking for white dinnerware for everyday use. Here are my requirements:

1. I want to store my dinnerware in my upper cabinets and they need to be 11" or smaller. I have found that when they state 11”, it sometimes measures 11, 10 3/4" or 11 1/4". For example: Apilco Hemstitch and Apilco Tradition are 11” plates, Hemstitch fits and Tradition does not. 2. I have 2 boys under 2 years old and I want something durable as well as something that will not be discontinued any time soon since I know that I will have to replace some pieces when they do break.3. I want something traditional or classic that can easily be used with accent pieces (colors, holiday, etc.).4. I prefer china or porcelain. I have looked at Apilco, Sur La Table, Williams-Sonoma Pantry, and Pillivuyt. I haven’t really looked at much bone china.5. My budget is $1200 for service for 12 and some serveware. I could go a bit higher or get service for 8 and add on over time. It'd be a huge bonus if I came in under budget.

Thanks very much for the reply, splatgirl. I checked out their website last night and plan to go to the store soon. Do they still make your pattern? They do have a couple of 10.5" options. It's nice to hear that yours is holding up over the years.

They do. I have this: http://www.crateandbarrel.com/outlet/...For some reason it's always in the outlet online--it has been for years and years. I don't think they carry it in the store at all anymore.The bowls have changed over the years, but I've added plates and mugs to my set as little as a couple of years ago and I can't tell the difference between old and new.

Oh, and I just measured mine and they are 10.5", not 10.25" as listed.In case that puts them in for real consideration, I'll mention that the lip around the edge means I can only put them every other slot in the dishwasher or they don't get clean. Kind of annoying, but I suspect it's a dishwasher specific issue because it was never a problem until this house/DW.

Thanks for taking the measurements. I like the dinnerware and the size is great. I have the same issue with the dishwasher. It's a new higher end dishwasher but the inside is just not as functional as I would like. I was on bed rest during my pregnancy and my husband bought it. It bugs be every day, but he's sensitive about it so I just leave it alone.

Thanks for the post happybaker. It's great to hear that it holds up. I just narrowed my list down and C&B Cafeware is looking like the front runner. I plan to go to the outlet store tomorrow to see if they have it there. I know that they carry the C&B Aspen, but and not sure about Cafeware. I do like the cafe look of it, it kind of makes me want to whip us some soup and biscuits.

I'm down to C&B Aspen, C&B Cafeware, Apilco Hemstitch, and Sur la Table Round Porcelain. Apilco may get kicked out based on cost.

Thanks for the link. I have looked around on Overstock, but there is so much that I get a little lost on their site. I like the basic white that you sent. I'm not familiar with Red Vanilla. I'll check out their stock on replacements. It looks like it may coordinate with other lines well.

Thanks, escondido. I always think of them as being pretty modern and my house is a 1920s Spanish so I didn't think about them. I just looked at their website and see that they do have some more classic styles. I love the wine glass idea :-).

We may be looking for similar things; I have a Tudor style home, and I have some brightly colored but very chip prone dinnerware and some very old white cafe ware I want to replace. I'm very partial to this, but it's such a bright white that I've shied away so far: http://www.neimanmarcus.com/p/Terraco... but no dimension for the dinner plates Others I've considered but have yet to pull the trigger on: http://www.worldmarket.com/product/in... AND: http://www.potterybarn.com/products/c... which doesn't help you because it's 12" for the dinner plate... Juliska berry and thread claims to be 11" for the dinner plate... cooking.com and sometimes chefscatalog.com have choices in white, too.

I'm sorry for the delayed response. I missed your post. Yes, it does look like we're on a similar hunt. I do like the terracotta from Neiman-Marcus. I'll call my local store to see if they have it in stock. Although, I would bet that it is larger than I need. I actually saw the Nantucket pattern at World Market. It is nice, but the display in the store had a big chip in it and that put me off of it. I am in love with Juliska Berry and Thread, it's too big :-(. I bought a plate to test the size and it was about 1/8" too big. I think that they really mean that it measures 11ish". I'll check out cooking.com and chefscatalog.com.

Right now I am close to purchasing Apilco Hemstitch. I bought a dinner plate from Williams-Sonoma to test the size and it does fit. It's lovely, just not quite as Spanish looking as I want, although I can easily bring in other pieces to help in that regard.

This is my "formal" dinnerware. http://www.arteitalica.com/dinnerware... I'd love to use it for every day, but it's not practical with the 2 little ones and I can't use the heat dry setting in the dishwasher with it. I don't have a complete set yet. I have been collecting it over time. I got the bulk of my set from a friend who moved from a Tuscan style home and sold me what she had. She's a designer so she bought it at her discount and she passed her cost on to me.

Arte Italica is gorgeous, have eyed it for years, but not making the investment. I live in a Tudor home, and that meshes with Spanish, English, Arts and Crafts and Colonial Revival, a lot of choices. I have a colorful set I love that's chippy all over and a very old and durable set of white cafe ware that I'm ready to replace. The terra cotta is very stark white looking, but I do love it. At least your list is narrowed now.

Yeah, it's tough to tell. If I make it to Neimans I will post an update. I do like to mix in some of my serveware though. I just make sure that I do the washing after. I'd rather be the one who chips it if anything gets chipped.

I just had an online chat with NM customer services. The dinner plate is 10.75". It is only available online, and she does not have access to any reviews re: how durable it is. I may order the $25 serving tray with bowls to check it out. Even if I don't go with the dinnerware, I'd get use out of the serving set.

If you do, let me know what you think. So far, only Horchow's and NM seem to sell it, and haven't found reviews yet. I really love it... very simple, but with a kind of lighthearted design. Edit: Looks like SLT used to sell it, or something very close... http://www.kaboodle.com/reviews/white...

Their basic white plate with a wide rim couldn't be more classic. I wanted to recommend that you check out whatever you consider if you use a microwave. I bought some smaller modern plates at IKEA and didn't check the info on the bottom. First one I used in the microwave cracked right in two--those have become the "cat" plates.

Great idea! I have been surfing around for restaurant supply stores and saw some old links posted here. Most of the websites seem to be to the trade, but I haven't found any stores local to me, Orange County, CA, that have anything other than low end or plastic dinnerware. Do you have any suggestions for an online source or store?

My husband and I had been looking around for big salad and chili bowls that were colorful, and everywhere we looked, we found white, white, white! Now I'm trying to recall the stores we visited here in Georgia and in our travels,but most of those have been named here already. The restaurant suppliers we looked at were in Philadelphia and West Georgia, so I never looked online for any. We ended up finding what we wanted on Overstock.com.

Bone china will surely be the most durable - in my house it is, at least - I am a great chipper of plate edges, and the bone china stuff is flawless. There are Wedgewood and Lenox outlet stores at many outlet malls. You may be able to find plates the right size there.

Hello, jmcarthur. Thank you for the reply. I'll search a little more seriously for a good restaurant supply store in Orange County or LA.

It sounds like you and my husband would be a great pair. He is Mr. Chip. He has been banned from setting the table, doing dishes, and unloading the dishwasher. When I started this dinnerware quest, I was looking for either Vietri or Juliska stoneware. I changed directions pretty quickly when I thought about the stress worrying about chips.

Do you have any other storage potential that would broaden your choices? I mean rearranging to use lower, deeper cabinets, or a plate rack on the wall for dinner plates, or a large kitchen storage drawer or free standing cupboard...?

Hey, mcf. Thanks fro your suggestions. With 2 little ones, I don't want to store the dinnerware in low cabinets or drawers because I don't want to have to undo a child safety lock every time I need one. In addition to that our dishwasher won't fit the larger plates and hand washing is just not going to happen. This kitchen is frustrating. We bought this home about 6 months ago. It's a 1920s but they previous owners had gutted and rebuilt the kitchen. They did a great job with most of it, but they could have done much better with regard to dinnerware storage.